Announced during a Nintendo Direct in November 2015 and released three weeks later, Pokémon Picross is the third free-to-start game on the Nintendo 3DS after Shuffle and Rumble World. Developed by Jupiter, the studio behind Nintendo’s Picross games, it blends the Japanese puzzle with Pokémon collecting. The concept is excellent; the business model, much less so.
Picross, Pokémon Style
Each puzzle hides a pixel-art Pokémon. Clue numbers at the end of every row and column show the runs of squares to fill in. By deduction, you fill in the grid until the picture is revealed, and the Pokémon joins your collection. The game has over 300 puzzles, from the 10 × 10 grids at the start to the large 20 × 15 grids of the Legendary Pokémon. Jupiter knows its stuff: the puzzles are well made and can always be solved by logic.
Abilities, a Genuinely Good Idea
Every Pokémon you catch brings an ability you can use in later puzzles: bombs that fill in squares, error correctors, a slowed-down timer. Combined with varied goals (finish within a set time, use a specific type, limit your abilities), they turn a solitary brain-teaser into a small strategy game. The limited-time Mythical Pokémon and the alternate mode, with its Mega Picross puzzles, extend the fun.
A Very Hungry Free-to-Start Model
The problem is Picrites. You need them to open every area, heal tired Pokémon, refill the P Gauge, buy the Mega Stylus or unlock the alternate mode. The game hands out very few: it takes weeks of daily training to progress without paying. The 5,000-Picrite purchase cap, beyond which everything becomes free, limits spending, but free progression remains the slowest of the three free-to-start 3DS games.
Should You Play It Today?
The Nintendo 3DS eShop closed in March 2023: the game can no longer be downloaded, and Picrites can no longer be bought. Those who already have it installed can keep playing for free, at the pace of daily training. Picross fans will find more comfort in the Picross S series on Switch, but no other Picross game features Pokémon.
Our verdict
A good Picross game, cleverly adapted to Pokémon, but held back by an overly greedy free-to-start model. For the patient, it remains an excellent pocket puzzler.
What we like
- Well-made puzzles from Jupiter
- Abilities that add strategy
- Over 300 puzzles and a demanding alternate mode
- Limited-time Mythical Pokémon
What we like less
- Extremely slow free progression
- Picrites needed for everything
- No longer downloadable since 2023
